Never Give Up

Perhaps you have had moments when you wanted to quit? Maybe you feel that way now. No matter what it is that has you down, regardless of the circumstances that have left you wondering how you can go on, there is hope. There is always hope.

These are my top three tools on moving forward even when giving up seems like the only option. I have used these tools to go from my own personal feelings of wanting to die, to waking up every morning with joy and a sense of adventure:

1. It’s okay to talk about it

Movies, television and social media all depict happy people pretending that they are perfect and that their life is perfect. The message that this sends is that if your life is not perfection, there must be something wrong with you. We compare our imperfect life with the supposed perfect life of others and judge that there must be something wrong with us. Then, because we don’t wish others to think that there is something wrong with us, we hide what is going on and simply do not talk about it. You are not wrong and you are not alone. Choose to talk to someone who is kind and does not judge you. Talking to another person about what is going on for you can be very freeing and can release the trauma and drama around it.

2. Stop trying to fix you

When you feel depressed, when you have thoughts of ending your life, when you can’t seem to find that happy feeling no matter how hard you try, often times, you decide that there is something wrong with you and you start desperately seeking to fix it. What if there’s nothing wrong with you? What if you don’t need to be fixed?

We spend so much time judging ourselves and our bodies and we are used to believing that we are wrong, wrong, wrong. Would you be willing to let that go? Would you be willing to consider that you’re not nearly as messed up as you’ve decided you are? Try asking this question every day, “What’s right about me that I’m not getting?”

I wonder how much lighter you would feel if you weren’t in constant judgment of you?

3. Start Every Day by Asking Questions

When you are thinking about giving up, the best thing you can do is to ask questions. Your thoughts are telling you what’s wrong. Your emotions may be out of control. You may wake up in the morning and just feel heavy.

When this occurs, rather than spiraling down into those all-too-familiar feelings of sadness, overwhelm and despair, ask a question. Asking questions can empower you to change anything.

Here are some questions you can ask:

What can I be or do different today to change this?

How does it get any better than this?

Universe, will you please show me something beautiful today?

What else is possible here that I’ve never considered?

Questions have the power to open doors and change anything. Ask.

I don’t know your story; at least not the details of it. I do know the sadness, depression and hopeless that comes when we believe our story and make it greater than us.

The reality is, nothing is greater than you. NOTHING. No matter what has occurred in your life, you have the power to change it. It is a choice. A choice that only you can make. Please make that choice! Make the choice to wake up in the morning and ask questions. Make the choice to stop judging and trying to fix you. Make the choice to talk to someone who is kind and let them into your world. Make the choice to never give up, to never give in and to never quit. Something else is possible.